


Left Behind

by SepticAbzies



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, I wish these three got to interact more, Kairi needs a hug, Roxas needs a hug, Shipping is Optional, Terra Needs A Hug, also kairi looks better in purple fight me, fortunately their comfort is each other, the paopu legend is both romantic and platonic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-13 02:14:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29021040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SepticAbzies/pseuds/SepticAbzies
Summary: "The three of us will always be together." And yet, Kairi was the only one who returned to the island."If we ran, I bet we could always be together." And yet, Roxas knew what 'loneliness' meant more than any of the others."The three of us can never be torn apart, all right?" And yet, Terra had to tear apart his own body, mind, and soul.This is the story how three broken souls find comfort in the least suspected people: each other.
Relationships: Kairi & Riku & Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Kairi & Roxas & Terra (Kingdom Hearts), Kairi & Roxas (Kingdom Hearts), Kairi & Terra (Kingdom Hearts), Roxas & Terra (Kingdom Hearts), mentions of the other trios
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	Left Behind

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place post-KH3, after Sora is rescued. How he's rescued doesn't matter honestly, at least, not in the context of this story. Also, minor spoiler alert for Melody of Memory.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Disney in any way, shape, or form!

**Left Behind**

_**"It's the story of one of those perpetual survivors–an expert at being left behind."**_ **– Markus Zusak, The Book Thief**

_No new messages._

Kairi sets her Gummiphone back down in her lap for the hundredth time today, as she sits on the branch of the nostalgic paopu tree.

Things are quiet today, a little too quiet, which is often what happens when most of the other Guardians are off on missions, a group which includes Sora and Riku.

(Yeah, just because Xehanort is gone doesn't mean Heartless no longer exist. The missions are nothing serious, though; just routine procedure.)

Kairi really doesn't like it when things are quiet like this, because it leaves her alone with her thoughts, which are often self-depreciating and angsty. She never means for her thoughts to be like that. It's just that no matter how hard she tries, her mind _always_ goes there, even if for a moment.

Apparently, today is a _bad_ day, because she can't bring herself to be positive right now. It probably has something to do with how Master Yen Sid didn't let her speak up at the meeting yesterday, how Sora and Riku were assigned their mission and she didn't get to go with them, how it always felt like her say never really mattered in the long run.

How hers, Sora's, and Riku's promise when they were still clueless kids building a raft was apparently left forgotten...

(But the two did promise to take pictures for her. Hence why she's checking her phone every ten seconds.)

At least, she's not the only one who was asked (more like forced) to stay behind. Roxas and Terra are currently in the same boat as she is, but she's not sure how they feel about it. Maybe they're thrilled to be by themselves for a while, to have a short vacation from their friends, because sometimes you need your space.

But she erases those thoughts from her mind. She has no control over their emotions, so it's not fair on them for her to assume anything. How they feel is their business, because their hearts are their own.

The thought of visiting them crosses her mind, but it leaves just as quickly as it comes. They may not want company right now. Even if she wants it in order to get her mind off of her demeaning thoughts.

Kairi checks her Gummiphone once again. Still _no new messages_.

"Hey, Kai," comes a familiar voice. She puts her Gummiphone in her pocket as she turns to face the voice.

Sure enough, there's Roxas standing there, with two sea salt ice cream bars in hand. She smiles, hoping that it's real enough to persuade him that nothing's wrong, "Hey, Rox. What's up?"

('Kai' and 'Rox' are the only nicknames the two of them can stand. Any other nicknames is met with an elbow to the gut of the person that called them that. That's something she and Roxas have in common.)

He crosses over and sits next to her on the tree branch (where Sora often sits), replying, "It's lonely being up on the clock tower by myself. The others have either missions or school and jobs all day, so it's just me." He hands over the second ice cream bar in his hand. She takes it with a smile, as he adds, "Besides, you seemed upset when you left the meeting yesterday. I figured you could use some company too."

Her voice is soft when she answers, "Thanks..."

He continues, "So, what's wrong?"

She's quiet, but not because she's unsure of whether or not she can trust him. She is very sure of Roxas' trustworthiness.

It's because she's not sure how to word it.

But she just decides to go for it, "I've been left behind again." Roxas is quiet. She's not sure if he understands, but she's relieved when he lets her explain, "Sora and Riku always get to go on missions together, while I am always left behind. When Xehanort was still at large, I understood why. It was because I didn't have the necessary training to go with them, while they both knew how to fight long before I got my Keyblade."

"But now?" he asks, seemingly knowing what her answer will be.

"But now, all we're fighting are Heartless, enemies that I _know_ I can handle. I mean, it's what I trained for, so I could one day fight at their sides. We promised ourselves that we would explore all the worlds _together_ ," Kairi continues, mentally noting how good it feels to finally get all of this off her chest. She sighs, "It just doesn't feel fair."

"Because it's not," Roxas' response mildly surprises her. He's not looking at her, though. He's instead glaring at the half-eaten ice cream bar in his hand. "It never is."

She instead decides to keep talking, and he lets her, "Maybe if I had taken up swordplay when I was kid, then things would be different."

"Why didn't you?" Roxas asks. He's not being mean. He's just curious.

"Because I was told that only boys played with swords," she answers him.

Roxas makes a face like he just heard something that disgusted him, "That a load of bull. You, Xion, and Aqua can all kick ass just as much as the rest of us. I've seen all three of you."

Kairi smiles at the small bit of praise he gives her, "Thank you. But when we were kids, we were told that boys and girls each had their own roles and their own expectations based on their genders. For example, wearing pink was only acceptable if you were a girl."

Roxas motions to her dress with his eyes, "Do _you_ like to wear pink?"

She shrugs, "I don't mind it, but when given a choice, I always try to choose purple."

Roxas returns her smile, but then it fades as things go quiet again. When he speaks again, his voice is soft, in a way that indicates that he's about to say something important, "I know how it feels to be left behind. During the year I was in the Organization, Axel and Xion both knew about Xion's origins when I didn't, and I never found out what about it was until it was too late for me to do something. They always seem to know stuff I don't, and now they're on a mission together, while I'm left behind. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind us getting sent on missions. It's a great way to see new worlds, but I really did want to go on this one. They're training Namine with her new Keyblade, and I wanted to help her, but...I didn't get a say. I didn't even get a chance to speak up."

"...You never do," this time, it's Kairi's turn to give sympathy. "It's the Masters that decide who goes and who stays behind."

"Yeah," Roxas quietly agrees, "and neither of us are in that group..."

They expect silence, not for another familiar voice to say, "Not yet, anyways." The two turn around to see Terra there, as he continues, "But with enough training, one day, you will be."

"Hey, Terra," Roxas greets him. "I thought the King sent you on a mission to train Isa with his new Keyblade."

"He did, initially," Terra confesses, "but Aqua and Ven... _forced_ me to take a vacation."

The strange wording doesn't pass by Kairi at all, " _'Forced'_?"

"Why?" Roxas is confused as well.

Not once during this conversation does Terra tell them how long he was there listening to them talk, but he gives them one hint through this line, "It's...rather complicated, but you guys could say that I feel a little left behind sometimes too."

"How so?" Roxas softly asks, as Kairi takes a bite of her ice cream.

Evidentally, Terra trusts them enough to let him get this particular burden off of his chest, since he leans against the tree branch (like Riku often does) and spills his heart out, "It just seems like they think I'm so fragile, I'll break. I appreciate their concern, but I'm frustrated about their lack of trust in my strength and my abilities as a Keyblade weilder."

"It's not the strength of your muscles they're worried about," Kairi quietly cuts in. Roxas is quiet, and so is Terra, both of them knowing what Kairi's about to say next.

"I know," Terra replies before she can continue. "My words there had a double meaning. Trust me, I know. They're not over me falling to darkness yet, not even after a year." He's silent for a moment, before asking a deep, loaded question, "Kairi, you never told me why you avoided me for so long while training under Aqua."

Kairi immediately tenses up. This is the one question she never wants to answer, least of all when Terra is in range.

But then Roxas places a warm hand over her shaky one, the part of Sora in him, as well as the part of him that's all him, obviously knowing that she's suffering. This somehow gives her the courage she needs to answer.

"Because your face...reminded me of _him_." She doesn't say his name. She doesn't have to. Both boys already know who she's talking about. "He used your face to capture me, make me a test subject, and then use me as a beacon for the Keyblade. I'm sorry, Terra..." It's a hard, sincere apology, because she genuinely never meant to make him feel bad. "It was just hard for me to separate you and Xehanort, but the longer time I spent training with you, the more I realized that you two are completely different people."

The brunette-haired man is very quiet. The empath in Kairi knows that he feels guilty, not just for what Xehanort did to her, but also for not noticing her pain earlier. "I'm sorry, Kairi."

But she smiles, "Apology _not_ accepted."

Terra immediately turns around to face her, surprise and a bit of curiosity on his face, "W-What?"

Kairi keeps her smile on, "I'm afraid I can't accept an apology that's not needed."

It's not his fault. Kairi's already accepted that, and Terra needs to learn that, too.

Terra is speechless, and seeing Roxas' identical smile puts his heart, mind, and body at ease. He returns their smiles with one of his own, before he leans against the tree (like Riku often does), watching the horizon with them.

In this moment, Kairi feels less alone and more self-confident than she did before.

"So, you feel left behind sometimes, too?" Roxas asks Terra, his and Kairi's hands still connected.

"Sometimes," Terra confirms, before explaining. "While I do get a say, sometimes it feels like it doesn't matter. Because like you said, Kairi, no one's really gotten over my fall to darkness, and I'm not just talking about Aqua and Ven. People often leave me out of certain missions if they think there's a high chance of me falling to darkness again."

"You won't," Kairi's confidence shines through when she says this, and she lets her faith in her fellow Guardians speak louder than her words. "I can feel your light burning strong and bright. I know for certain that you'll never make the same mistake twice."

Terra looks over at Kairi's smile, and then at Roxas' when the blonde says, "She's right."

The man looks slightly amused, yet genuinely curious as he asks, "May I politely ask why you agree with her, Roxas?"

Roxas' smile doesn't fade, "Kairi and I are connected through her light." Because when he and Namine were created, they immediately developed traits inherited by Sora, Ventus, and Kairi. "Besides, I know for a fact that she's always right. So if she has faith in you, Terra, so do I. And so should you."

Terra politely nods his head, smiling, "Thank you, both of you."

The three of them take the following few minutes to quietly watch the sky meet the sea, the peaceful and serene sight calming them within their very hearts. This moment between them somehow deepened their bond and made them glad they decided to visit each other.

(It also allows Kairi and Roxas to finish their ice cream.)

They were all sick and tired of being lonely, of being left behind and forced to wait for their friends. But now, they no longer had to feel this way.

Roxas broke the silence, "I've always loved your smile, Kairi. Your real one. It's nice to see it again after so long."

"Because I don't feel lonely anymore," Kairi replies. But then her smile disappears as she realizes an awful truth behind everything she just told them.

"What's wrong?" Terra asks.

Her voice is soft as she confesses, "Everything I told you guys...are all things that Sora and Riku don't know. They'll be slightly mad and very hurt that you know while they don't."

"Understandable," Terra replies. "Don't worry about it. We won't tell a single soul."

"We promise, Kairi," Roxas agrees, "Everything discussed here between us stays between us."

An unspoken feeling all three of them share is implied by this promise: everything discussed between them is nothing but secrets that all their other friends don't know.

The two breathe sighs of relief when her returns.

In that moment, Kairi realizes something else the three of them share. She's heard their stories from them and others that were there.

Terra promised Aqua and Ven that they'd always be together, but he was the one tortured by Xehanort the most, his body, mind, and heart all being torn apart in one short moment.

Roxas proposed that he, Axel, and Xion run away together, but he was the one forced into being all alone in the end, his only choice according to everybody else being to rejoin with Sora.

And she had created that Lucky Charm so she, Sora, and Riku would always find each other again, but she had been told to remain on the island, instead of joining Sora to find Riku.

But her meeting with Terra and Roxas had given her back her fire that she was desperately searching for before this, and never managed find by herself, and this time, she's become confident to let her light, once again, lead people back together.

Terra and Roxas look at her with mild surprise and confusion when she gets up from her seat on the tree branch, but then stands up on it on Roxas' other side. She grabs one of the star-shaped fruit before jumping down.

"A paopu fruit?" Roxas asks, one of his eyebrows raised in curiosity.

"Yeah, one that the three of us share," Kairi proposes, standing in front of both of them. "Together. That way, we never have to worry about being alone again, because even if all hope is lost and we ever do lose the others as friends, then we'll always have each other."

The two guys simply smile at her as they get up from their spots on the tree to join her.

!~~~L~E~F~T~~B~E~H~I~N~D~~~!

It's a week later when the other Guardians return to the Mysterious Tower to report in, back from their respective missions. They weren't expecting anything to change, but you'd be very mistaken if you thought they didn't immediately notice the changes to the three people they left behind (but didn't want to).

The first, and most obvious, change they all notice is Kairi's new outfit. It's no longer pink, but white and purple, and more akin to the one she wore when she was fourteen, and it's more combat-based than the one before. They also notice that she looks and seems to feel a lot more comfortable and confident in it.

The second change they all notice is Roxas' new habit of staying incredibly close to Kairi. It really feels like they've gotten a lot closer than they were before. They know that Roxas likes to be his own person and make his own choices, so the most likely reason is that the two found something to bond over.

The third, and most surprising, change they all notice is Terra's newfound sense of self-confidence. He has this air of peace and serenity that he didn't seem to have before. It's subtle, but you know it's there.

Sora and Riku arrive last, and meet everybody else on the way up, but when they get to Yen Sid's office, Mickey quietly holds up a finger, a sign that Yen Sid will get to them in a moment. And it's easy to see why Yen Sid's busy.

Because he's currently talking to Terra, Kairi, and Roxas.

Actually, he's not so much talking, as he's listening.

"Please, Master Yen Sid," Terra is speaking, and not once does his voice waver during the following speech, "Kairi needs real experience in order to get stronger. Being left behind all the time will never help her. If you're worried about her safety, then don't be. Roxas and I will be with her every step of the way in case she does get into trouble."

Surprisingly, it's not Yen Sid who replies first, but Mickey, "Very well."

"Mickey?" Yen Sid is obviously confused.

"I trust them, Master," Mickey explains his reasons. He turns to the other Guardians in the room, his eyes nonverbally telling them to not speak and try to understand.

"Very well," Yen Sid agrees after a moment of silence. "Where you three go, and how long you're gone, is all up to you."

Terra, Roxas, and Kairi bow, as Terra answers, "Thank you, Master."

Sora and Riku manage to corner Kairi as the three are preparing to leave on their (who knows how long) mission. The two boys have very mixed feelings about this. As much as they're happy that Kairi is getting to go on missions and seeing new worlds they all promised each other to do, they're rather hurt that this mission isn't with them (and this isn't counting the fact that they're a little scared for her safety).

"Hey, Kai," Sora greets her with a smile, he and Riku both mentally deciding to be completely honest with her. "Love the new look!"

She flashes them a smile, and the two immediately know that it's real, after not having seen it in a long time. "Thank you! Roxas and Terra helped me ask the fairies for a new one." She twirls around, and asks them, "What do you think?"

"It's definitely more you," Riku replies with a small smile. "You look good, Kairi."

Kairi's smile is so wide and bright that it almost blinds them.

"So what prompted this change?" Sora doesn't mean anything by this question. He's just curious. But for some reason, this makes Kairi's smile fade just a bit when he asks her.

It's subtle, but both Sora and Riku notice.

"Kairi?" Riku asks.

She immediately slaps her smile back on. They're expecting her smile to be fake, so they're surprised when her smile is still the real one, "I'll tell you guys later. Right now, I have a mission to do." As she turns around and walks away, she calls back, "Don't worry, I'll send you pictures!"

As she meets Terra at the Gummi Ship, Sora stops his Nobody as the blonde passes by, "Roxas! You care to explain what that was about?" Roxas is quiet, and Sora decides to push (gently, but push nonetheless), "Roxas, _please_."

"Sorry, but no," Roxas' response confirms to them that not only does he know, but that it's a secret between _them_ three, no one else.

"What?" Riku can only ask.

"C'mon, Roxas, we're her best friends!" Sora pleads. "We deserve to know!"

The blonde makes them speechless with his answer, "I think if Kairi wants you guys to know, she'll tell you herself."

He can only shrug as he turns to meet Kairi and Terra at the Ship, leaving the other Guardians in the confused dust.

In the next few months, a fourth change becomes crystal clear, a change that makes it obvious and evident that the three all shared something that the others would never understand:

While the bonds between all the Guardians of Light are unbreakable, it had started to feel like the bond between Roxas, Kairi, and Terra was the strongest of them all.

**Author's Note:**

> A couple of people noticed that Kairi, Roxas, and Terra, at the end of KH1, Days, and BBS respectively, all have the same things happen to them, after they've said the same thing: being left alone after promising the other two of their respective trios that they'd always be together (as well as witnessing one of their loved ones turn to shards of light in their arms - Sora, Xion, and Eraqus). I found that interesting, and that was the inspiration for this little one-shot. So, this story revolves around these three, because they deserve some time together.
> 
> I like to call the Kairi, Roxas, and Terra trio the "Heavy-Hitter Trio", because I noticed that they all like to hit hard. And yes, I gave Namine and Isa Keyblades too. Also, whether or not the three actually shared the paopu fruit is entirely up to you. Within this story canonically, they do, but I left it vague in case some of you disagree.


End file.
